According to the BBC, trials will take place on less busy rural and suburban roads, using what the paper describes as a semi-autonomous mode which will allow a driver to take control of the vehicle if necessary. A driver will ride along during all tests for safety reasons.

The tests will be carried out by the Mobile Robotics Group at Oxford University which has adapted a Nissan Leaf for autonomous driving. The prototype uses stereo cameras and laser scanners as sensors, and is able to learn frequently driven routes. (See Gizmag's February report for more details of the prototype.)

Google is perhaps the company most closely associated with autonomous driving, though several auto makers have implemented and continue to develop automated driver aids.